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By Way Of Deception: The Making And Unmaking Of A Mossad Officer
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Product Description
The first time the Mossad came calling, they wanted Victor Ostrovsky for their assassination unit, the kidon. He turned them down. The next time, he agreed to enter the grueling three-year training program to become a katsa, or intelligence case officer, for the legendary Israeli spy organization. By Way of Deception is the explosive chronicle of his experiences in the Mossad, and of two decades of their frightening and often ruthless covert activities around the world. Penetrating far deeper than the bestselling Every Spy a Prince, it is an insider's account of Mossad tactics and exploits. In chilling detail, Ostrovsky asserts that the Mossad refused to share critical knowledge of a planned suicide mission in Beirut, leading to the death of hundreds of U.S. Marines and French troops. He tells how they tracked Yasser Arafat by recruiting his driver and bodyguard; how they withheld information on the whereabouts of American hostages, paving the way for the Iran-Contra scandal; and how their intervention into secret UN negotiations led to the sudden resignation of ambassador Andrew Young and the downfall of his career. By Way of Deception describes the shocking scope and depth of the Mossad's influence, disclosing how Jewish communities in the U.S., Europe, and South America are armed and trained by the organization in secret ?self-defense? units, and how Mossad agents facilitate the drug trade in order to pay the enormous costs of its far-flung, clandestine operation. And it portrays a network that has grown dangerously out of control, as internal squabbles have led to the escape of terrorists and the pursuit of ?policies? completely at odds with the interests of the state of Israel. This document is possibly the most important and controversial book of its kind since Spycatcher.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #132451 in Books
- Published on: 1991
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Paperback
- 396 pages
Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
Intelligence agencies should never try to ban books about themselves. Like Peter Wright's Spycatcher (Penguin USA, 1987), which was suppressed in Britain , this book on Israel's legendary spy organization by a former Mossad katsa or case officer has ended up on the New York Times best seller list. Among the controversial revelations that led Israel to seek a ban (which was quickly overturned in the United States and Canada) is Ostrovsky's charge that the Mossad refused to share knowledge of a planned suicide mission in Beirut, resulting in the deaths of 241 U.S. Marines in 1983. Another New York Times best seller, Dan Raviv and Yossi Melman's Every Spy a Prince ( LJ 7/90), provides more reliable details on Israel's spy network.
- Wilda Wil liams, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
About the Author
Victor Ostrovsky was raised in Israel, but was born in Canada. At eighteen he became the youngest officer in the Israeli military, eventually rising to the rank of lieutenant commander in charge of naval weapons testing. He was a Mossad case officer from 1984-1986.
Customer Reviews
Half the Story
One thing you should know about this book is that in the sequel, The Other Side of Deception, Ostrovsky admits that some of the info in By Way of Deception was deliberately inaccurate and meant to serve as a message to the Mossad that they want to leave him alone or he will reveal the real info. The Other Side of Deception also reveals his true reasons for writing an expose, not so much idealism as it was self-preservation (if he weren't Machiavellian, do you think they would have made him a case worker?).
To address another reviewer's doubts: he was given protection by the Canadian government. And he acted quickly to make sure he had a lot of publicity so any sudden death would be carefully investigated with the Mossad being the obvious suspect.
Inner sanctum of the Mossad
This is a fantastic book if you are looking for an operational manual on intelligence training. Most of the book focuses on how the mossad pick and train their agents, along with the author's experience with the training methods. It also touches upon the politics and foreign relationships within the intelligence community.
The last part of the book details several missions of the Mossad from an insider's perspective. This gave real insight into details often missed when reading newspapers (often manipulated by the intelligence community).
Buy the book, you will not be disappointed. This is a must have for any intelligence library.
Excellent and Gripping Book
This is a great book written by a man who put his life on the line inorder to let the world know how terrible the Mossad really is. He eloquently summarizes his life story, growing up as an ardent Zionist, climbing high in the Israeli military ranks, and finally becoming disillusioned after achieving the dream of many Israelis: joining the Mossad. He explains in great detail many of the ways, training techniques, and past operations of this ultra-secret "intelligence agency" that he was a part of for four years. If, as some people say, this book is not factual, why is it that most of the events are actually recorded in old newspapers, magazines, T.V. news, etc.? All you have to do is spend enough time and you can find for yourself the articles on Yehia Meshad, Jonathan Pollard, Sabra and Shatilla, the Fallashas, and so on. Offcourse the major difference is that Ostrovsky, as an insider, ties things together and goes into the details that we could never find in the news. Furthermore, why would the Israeli govt. and Jewish groups in the U.S. try to prevent this book from being published in the first place? Finally, I just heard that this book is out of print and banned in the U.S. now. If this is true, it is a shame. It just goes to show that Ostrovsky is right.
